The Story of the Star Spangled Banner

David Barton tells the story of how a lawyer penned a poem that would become our nation's anthem.

Pressed hard

An interesting time, wouldn't you say?

Israel and Iran are staring at each other like Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago.  Who's going to try and throw the first punch?

Jobs once plentiful in our country are evaporating faster than a spilled cup of water on a Phoenix sidewalk.

Taxes on the increase.  More and more promised by the government.  Less and less being received.

Moral fabric tattered all about us.  Wear and tear here.  Full-blown holes there.

Last week, a friend compared our times quite well to a period in Elijah's life.  No, not Mr. Wood of Frodo Baggins fame.  The Tishbite of prophet fame.  You can read about the fellow in the book of 1 Kings in your Bible from the seventeenth chapter to the end of that book and a bit into 2 Kings.  A couple of the lessons my friend shared.

1.  Tough times aren't uncommon.  And often, you might have no control over being in the midst of such a challenging moment.  Do we respond with bitterness?  Or do we trust a sovereign God and dwell in the peace he has promised and appropriated for us?

2.  God provides.  Amidst the famine, food ran scarce.  No, food ran out.  One woman was getting ready to eat her last meal with her son after which time they would starve to death.  God provided.  Elijah fled for his life from a psychopathic queen and her infantile king.  One hundred miles.  In the wilderness.  And God provided food and water through a most peculiar avian method.  It's a theme that runs through God's word.  He cares for his people.

3.  God doesn't always provide on our time schedule.  I'd love a fat bank account.  Right now.  I'd like to know that I'll be able to go to the fridge and grab some OJ every day between now and my home going.  Perhaps I may find myself ready to bake my last loaf of bread with our last cup of flour.  Will I still trust him if he should choose to squeeze me from my comfort zone?

One other point, and it moves us from the individual to the national.

4.  God judges nations.  Israel's famine did not come about because their carbon footprint exceeded that of the Egyptians.  Nor did it occur because of El Nino in the eastern Mediterranean.  I don't think sheep methane had anything to do with it either.  God sent Elijah to Ahab to declare the three year famine.  Why?  Ahab and Jezebel had unleashed a godlessness upon the land that has echoed through the centuries.  It was punitive.

If we continue to reject God as a people, we can anticipate more troubles, trials, and times of testing within our nation.  That goes without saying.  But will we learn from Elijah and trust in the Lord?  Ah, there's the rub.

A funny thing happened on the way to the airport

Do you remember when you first learned to drive a stick? For many, it was a planned, thought out, and trained for event. If you're like me, you borrowed a car only to later learn that it was a stick, and knowing the principles, you ground'em 'til you found'em.

My bride's off to Dallas with our girls. They left this morning. Son #2 caught a flight this afternoon to visit son #1 for a week. My plan was to drop son #2 at the airport and take son #4 shopping for some things. Son #3 hemmed a little and hawed a little and finally decided not to join us.

I am praising God even now for that little bit of providence.

En route the airport in my mighty, mighty Taurus station wagon, I happened to notice (about half-way to the airport) that the car was rapidly on its way to an overheat. I pulled into the nearest parking lot, all the while wondering about the interesting timing of this event, pulled out my cell phone, and dialed son #3 still at home. The only vehicle left at the house, other than my motorcycle, was son #2's manual transmission auto-mobile. Son #3 has never driven one of those.

"Tyler (son #3), get Drew's keys (son #2) off the counter top and come get us. You got any questions?"

No panic. No trepidation. The lad had never touched a stick in his life. He's seen it done. Never been the driver. Ten minutes later, like he'd been doing it for years, son #3 rounds the corner and saves the day. Had he come with us, we'd be stranded in the 100 degree heat having to start calling friends, none of which would have been a sure bet to be able to get us in time to get son #2 to the airport.

I have found that the oddest things strike pride in my heart regarding my sons' maturity. This moment, as I have told son #3, still has me smiling.